HK drone show featuring Bun Festival wows citizens

Hong Kong's first drone show has seen thousands flock to the Wan Chai harbourfront on Saturday (11 May), with some saying the show was more impressive than the fireworks display earlier this month. 

Themed around the traditional festivities of the Birthday of Buddha and the Cheung Chau Bun Festival (太平清醮), the drone show aims to promote the local culture and spread blessings. 

According to the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB), a thousand drones hovered about 90 metres starting at 8 pm above Victoria Harbour, forming different patterns depicting elements from the traditional festivals. Some patterns including a 60-metre-high giant bun tower, 30-metre “lucky bun” (平安包), flower board (太平清醮花牌), dancing lions and Chinese knots (平安結). 

The drone show has drawn mixed reactions from netizens. Media intelligence firm CARMA has seen over 500 related mentions over the past three days. Among these, 31.9% carried a positive sentiment, while 9.5% carried a negative sentiment.

Some netizens have suggested that the drone shows are more impressive than pyrotechnic displays and also serve as a more environmentally friendly alternative, said Charles Cheung, CARMA’s HK GM. "A number of netizens have appreciated the innovative idea of featuring patterns related to the Bun festival, which promotes unique Hong Kong culture," he added.

"However, we have also come across comments from several netizens expressing uncertainty about whether the drone shows can effectively boost tourism and attract visitors to Hong Kong," Cheung said.

Discover Hong Kong’s Instagram post has garnered more than 2,945 likes and 13 comments, a check by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE saw. While some said the drone show surpassed the Labour Day fireworks display on 2 May, some appreciated the drone show for its beauty.

To further enhance the joyous ambience, the HKTB gave away free ice cream to the audience in the evening.

The next drone show will be held on 10 June to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival. Meanwhile, the next pyrotechnic display will be held on 15 June, which is the first day of “Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Races”. This comes as part of Hong Kong government's HK$1.1 billion investment to enhance the Hong Kong brand.

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to the HKTB for more information. 

Don’t miss: HK's Labour Day fireworks show draws mixed reactions from netizens

Most recently, some Chinese tourists expressed their disappointment after attending the Labour Day fireworks show organised by the HKTB.

A check by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE saw on Xiaohongshu that netizens have been sharing their opinions about the pyrotechnic display. While some expressed that the smoke was excessively thick, making it feel like a smoke performance (煙霧表演) rather than a fireworks display, others stated that fireworks shows during festivals are more impressive.

Join us this coming 26 June for Content360 Hong Kong, a one-day-two-streams extravaganza under the theme of "Content that captivates". Get together with our fellow marketers to learn about AI in content creation, integration of content with commerce and cross-border targeting, and find the recipe for success within the content marketing world! 

Related articles:

HKTB expands ‘Hong Kong Pals’ programme to promote hospitality culture
HKTB taps grassroot pop legend Wan Kwong to reinterpret Temple Street culture
HKTB invites Weasley twins to explore HK and promote HK Sevens